


A Selfish Interlude

by thevillainofthisstory



Series: Marching Inexorably Forward [4]
Category: Danny Phantom
Genre: Gen, M/M, Vlad POV, introspective
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-19
Updated: 2017-09-19
Packaged: 2018-12-31 12:22:03
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,207
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12132408
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thevillainofthisstory/pseuds/thevillainofthisstory
Summary: Vlad has a plan to fix everything, he's sure of it. Forgiveness is only a scheme away.





	A Selfish Interlude

**Author's Note:**

> Two updates in the same day! This one is significantly shorter than the other ones, of course. I also find Vlad to be an easier voice to write in. He's certainly different; tell me if you think he's okay. I like writing Vlad POV.

It had been three days since his indiscretion with Daniel. Three monotonous days filled with self-loathing. Occasionally, just to spice things up, Vlad would alternate the self-loathing with righteous indignation. After all, Daniel had been a willing participant. The drug hadn’t altered his personality, his desires had remained unchanged. Vlad had simply failed to account for those specific desires and how deliciously they meshed with his own.

No. He was the one at fault. Vlad was the adult. By virtue of age and experience he should have never taken such cruel advantage of the younger halfa. It was wrong. Vlad was aware of his sin, on some level. Longing after a teenage boy. There were words for that, ugly words that would have him removed from office and polite society. Vlad didn’t care overmuch about those consequences; he was a careful, discreet man by nature. Most of the time, at least. Until a certain dark haired hero swooped in, riling Vlad’s temper and skewing his perspective. It was amazing how easily Daniel could ruin everything. It was even more amazing how willing Vlad was to let him.

There was no reason for it. That’s what galled Vlad the most: the utter lack of sense in this choice. Daniel loathed him from the moment they had discovered one another. With good reason, Vlad grudgingly admitted. Vlad had never been overly self-controlled; as soon as Daniel’s existence became known to him, Vlad had an all-consuming need to possess the boy. No one could train him, understand him, appreciate him like Vlad could. But in his haste to seize his prize, Vlad forgot to take Daniel’s own willful personality into account.

Daniel. What an infuriating individual. He was much more complex, in some ways, than any other teenager on the planet. Yet in others he was so beautifully simple. Danny wanted to protect simply because he had the ability to do so. Such a notion was anathema to Vlad whose powers existed to further his own goals. Daniel had no goals. He lived in the moment, lacking the wherewithal to plan more than three or four moves ahead. It made Vlad furious and jealous at the same time. How simple it must be to have enough power to blast inelegantly through life’s problems.

Daniel was smart, smarter than he allowed himself to be. “I’m not and idiot,” he had said. Vlad agreed; Daniel suffered from long, unfortunate bouts of stupidity, but he was by no means an idiot. An idiot could not have bested Vlad so thoroughly and frequently as Daniel did.

Perhaps that was where Vlad’s interest had begun. For a majority of his adult life, Vlad had gone unchecked and unchallenged. The moment he discovered the abilities his accident had left him with, Vlad had decided that this was the universe’s way of repaying him for an early life better left unmentioned. Power was a burden for those unequipped to wield it but Vlad rose to the occasion with scientific zeal. Nothing about his ghostly prowess went untested. After decades of training and dedication, Vlad was the undisputed master of his own fate. Nothing was beyond his reach given enough time and effort. Until a young boy came stumbling through his mansion, blithely wrecking Vlad’s sense of self. He was no longer alone. And this new halfa, fresh-faced and stubborn, threw himself into combat with Vlad unthinkingly. Again and again and again until Daniel finally managed to get the upper hand. It was unthinkable. Vlad should have been furious.

Instead, he found himself amused. Vlad was still annoyed, of course. He had been rejected and that never sat well. But more importantly than the irritation of being bested by a child was the strange undercurrent of amusement Vlad felt at the entire situation. Another halfa created by Jack Fenton’s folly. What were the odds? What were the odds of another successful halfa being created by the same bumbling fool?

Vlad had thought himself a miracle, a gift of creation. Hubris, perhaps, but there was no other explanation to be found. Until Daniel, at least. Daniel was everything that Vlad had no interest in being. Daniel was engaging and sarcastic and constantly striving for some vague concept of greater good. And in every instance that Vlad was aware of, Daniel had succeeded. His little badger was the gift, not him. Vlad was simply the rough draft, the proof of concept in comparison with what Daniel would undoubtedly become.

Little badger. That had stung when Daniel stripped his right to the affectionate moniker. More than the distrust, more than the constant vigilance, more than being kicked out, Vlad regretted the loss of that more than anything. Hurting Vlad’s supposedly nonexistent feelings was obviously not Daniel’s greatest concern at the time, but still. Vlad wanted to be angry with Daniel for denying what little affection he could safely show. A hand on the shoulder, a shared quip, a subtle glance that no one else could possibly understand…those were the only ways that Vlad could indicate his twisted admiration.

It _was_ twisted, he was aware. Vlad simply didn’t care. He was a nearly immortal absurdly powerful spectral being; the laws of man and nature had ceased to apply to him years ago. That was before he had met Daniel, though. Propriety was suddenly becoming paramount once more. Stealing Maddie, a married woman, away from her husband had been morally grey for Vlad. It happened all the time at all levels of society. But Maddie was not who he remembered; time and distance had changed her in ways that Vlad could never achieve. In many ways he was stuck; just as true ghosts were bound to their natures, so was Vlad. Skulker would never move beyond the need to hunt. Ember would never give up her need for recognition. Vlad would never, could never, stop his selfish and obsessive tendencies. His human half simply gave him more room to maneuver around the urges.

That had been his theory up until Daniel. So many things changed when he met Daniel. As a teenager he was constantly changing. As a ghost he was always in motion, learning and shifting and becoming what he was meant to be. Would he ossify after that, set in place like the bone Vlad had helped mend? Or could Daniel continue to surpass every expectation and be more malleable than any ghost had ever been? Vlad had no idea and the possibilities were enticing.

Daniel was enticing, against all rational thought. They were well matched in so many unexpected ways despite the gap in age and experience. Daniel was quick witted and quicker tempered. He was indulgent with those he loved and infuriating to those who earned his ire. And most importantly, his trust was not easy to earn. Vlad admired that about Daniel especially since it was one of the things he most prized in himself. The way that Danny had looked up at Vlad before setting his arm was both intoxicating and terrifying. The absolute trust that it had required, if only for a few minutes, was humbling. Vlad did not deserve that trust. He knew it then like he knew it now. That didn’t stop him from wanting it.

Want. That was the source of all his issues. He wanted a great many things. Respect from the world for his accomplishments. Revenge against Jack for the accident that took so many years from him, despite the favorable way things had worked out. Daniel’s attention. Complete control of his core. To hear that noise his little badger made when he bit down on-

No. He had to give that up. It was a one-time opportunity that would never be recreated. Daniel had been more than firm about the consequences of Vlad’s actions. Whatever fragile trust that had existed between them was shattered. Vlad was still trying to decide if it had been worth it. He suspected not, since he could no longer interact with Daniel. Of course it was better than what he deserved, but Vlad hadn’t cared about what he actually deserved for years. All that mattered was what he wanted and how he would go about achieving it.

Was Daniel, a teenage scamp with a chip on his shoulder, really worth all of this? No, probably not. But he was the closest thing Vlad had ever found to an equal; in time, Daniel would undoubtedly be a match for Vlad in all respects. That hazy future was a good motivator and the only reason that Vlad was wallowing in self-pity rather than allowing himself to be consumed by it.

Daniel could still be his equal, his companion. Vlad had suffered only a temporary setback. The major obstacle was his non-platonic feelings for the younger halfa. Vlad refused to classify them further; romantic was too strong a word but sexual seemed too crass. So the solution was to simply remove those inconvenient emotions.

The pheromone base he had given Maddie was a false start. Vlad had thought that if he could chemically replicate the urges then he could either suppress them or remove them all together by introducing another compound. Failing that, he turned his attention to the Ghost Zone. Skulker would be arriving with the artifact soon enough.

Glancing at the clock above his mantel, Vlad realized that he had been sitting mindlessly at his desk for the last half hour. That simply wouldn’t do. Daniel was a conundrum yes but he wasn’t worth wasting an entire day over. Especially when the solution to Vlad’s indiscretion was so close at hand.

Standing and stretching, Vlad tugged gently at the constantly pulsing ecto energy that thrummed just beneath his skin. The transformation from man to monster came as naturally as breathing.

Slipping down through the floor, Vlad floated casually to his lab. There were samples to examine and notes to correct. Plenty of less pathetic pursuits to pass the time until Skulker arrived.

* * *

 

It was nearly three hours later before Vlad checked the time again. Skulker was late. With as much as Vlad paid him, punctuality should have been a higher priority. Sighing, Vlad turned on the television. He had a sinking suspicion what had happened to delay his bounty hunter.

Sure enough, the news station was playing live footage of yet another so called haunting. Skulker was locked in combat with none other than Danny Phantom over what Vlad could just make out as the south bridge exit of the park.

That delayed his plans even further. Skulker was no match for Daniel even on his best day. Perhaps years ago, when Daniel was still a fledgling, but not now. Any hits that Skulker managed to land were pure carelessness on Daniel’s part. Although, Skulker didn’t quite seem to be able to catch Daniel. Normally Phantom’s ridiculous need for witty banter provided opportunity for at least one solid hit. Not today though; Daniel was fighting like a man possessed.

Vlad took a moment to chuckle at his own joke. Well, they weren’t really possessed. Were they? Corpses possessed by their own ghosts? No, there had been a change in their DNA, he already knew that.

Back to the prize fight, Vlad was surprised at Daniel’s tenacity. Perhaps he had been more affected than Vlad had anticipated. Daniel’s active participation had been unexpected but Vlad’s parting shot as he left was intended to confuse and disorient, not enrage. As Daniel froze Skulker solid, Vlad paid close attention to his face. The angry glint in his glowing green eyes, the furious clench of his jaw…perhaps Vlad had yet again pressed a little too far. Daniel was taking his frustration out through his work. How oddly familiar.

With a blast of blue light, Skulker was saved from shattering by the Fenton Thermos. Slamming the cap back on, Daniel immediately turn and flew away. The news crew tried in vain to follow but Daniel was superhumanly fast.

Perhaps Daniel was just as conflicted as Vlad was. Remembering their night together was a luxury that Vlad had yet to afford himself; dwelling on the past was unhealthy when he had much more control over the future. But for a moment, Vlad allowed himself to recall the moment when Daniel unexpectedly capitulated. The drag of his cheek along Vlad’s rougher one, nosing at his ear despite knowing how Vlad would react. The delightfully pleased noises he made while sucking on an earlobe, driving Vlad mad with want. Daniel had known what he was doing. Even if he blamed the ‘pheromone’, Daniel had already shown that he was in complete control of his faculties. The younger halfa had wanted, in that moment, to be there.

Unfortunately, Vlad had already formulated a plan to fix everything. Daniel’s interest was astonishing but sadly irrelevant. Maybe in another time, had they been anyone but who they were. Vlad was going to make things right. Daniel was young and malleable. He would understand in time. Who knew, perhaps the younger man would even be grateful.

Making his way over to the Ghost Portal, Vlad keyed in the code that unlocked it from the other side. His package would be arriving through the back, it seemed.


End file.
